William James Bryan (October 10, 1876 - March 22, 1908) was an attorney, county prosecutor, and DemocraticU.S. Senator from the American state of Florida. Bryan's stint in the Senate was brief, having been appointed to fill a vacancy the day after Christmas of 1907 — less than three months before his own death at the age of 31.

Following graduation, Bryan taught school for one year and worked on a plantation for another, all the while studying for law school.[1] Bryan then enrolled in the law department of Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, from which he graduated in 1899.[2]

Bryan was admitted to the bar later in 1899 and began the practice of law in Jacksonville, Florida.[2] Bryan initially opened a partnership but separated from his partner to open his own private office the following year.[1]

In 1902 Bryan was elected as Duval County solicitor in its Criminal Court of Record.[2] He was re-elected to this office in 1906, remaining in that capacity throughout 1907.[1] Bryan assumed office in May 1903 and took action to ensure the enforcement of the Florida legislature's prohibition against Sunday operation of saloons and oversaw a crackdown against gambling in Jacksonville.[3]

On December 26, 1907, Bryan was appointed to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Stephen Mallory II.[2] Bryan traveled to Washington, DC to take the seat on January 8, 1908,[4] thereby becoming the second youngest member in the body's history, following Henry Clay.[2]

About a month after his arrival in the nation's capital,[4] Bryan was stricken with typhoid fever, an illness which caused his premature death on March 22, 1908, at the age of 31.[2] Bryan was buried at Evergreen Cemetery in Jacksonville, Florida.[2]

Bryan's older brother, Nathan Philemon Bryan (1872-1935), would be elected to the United States Senate in 1910 and served a full term in Washington before becoming a Federal Circuit Court judge.[5]